How Caregivers Can Combat Stress in the Winter

07 Dec 2017

The winter is a beautiful season, especially here in Central Pennsylvania. However, the days can feel long, dark and dreary which can lead to stress, depression and other side effects. These winter months, it’s so important that our caregivers actively seek out ways to combat stress. This helps them remain fresh and focused for our residents, giving them the best possible care year-round.

Take a look at a few ways caregivers can and should combat stress in the winter:

Talk with a Peer

We encourage our caregivers to speak with their peers about their stress openly and often. Whether it’s one bad day, or what feels like a bad month, you have to speak up in order for things to get better! A peer can offer you their insight as well as encouragement. Sometimes just being “heard” is the best medicine to help give you a fresh start tomorrow.

Give Yourself Down Time

Everyone needs a break, especially caregivers who work tirelessly to serve and care for aging loved ones. We encourage our caregivers to take down time if they are feeling stressed and need to hit the reset button. Enjoy some time at home with your family, doing something special just for you or simply rest. You cannot care for someone else if you do not first care for yourself!

Look for the Positive in Each Day

No matter how horrible a day may seem, there is truly something positive in each and every day. Though this may be hard to find at times, we encourage our caregivers and staff to help one another look on the positive side and to uplift one another. If you can find a reason to smile, even amidst chaos, you will drastically help to reduce your stress.

Set Goals

Feeling stressed is a good indication that you need to adjust your priorities. What matters most? What can wait? We help our caregivers set goals and prioritize their tasks so that they have a clear path for success. Feeling like you need to do everything all in one day is unrealistic and will certainly increase stress. Instead, we encourage setting reasonable and realistic goals.

Ask for Help

Finally and most importantly, if you are a caregiver who is feeling stressed throughout these winter months, stop and ask for help. Your health and safety and the health and safety of those you care for depend upon it! Talk to a manager about your current workload and other stressors. Or ask for emotional support from a therapist. No one should have to feel stressed for weeks or months on end. Seek help so you can continue to help others!

Whether you serve as a caregiver, or work in any other industry, stress must be proactively dealt with. We hope you found some of these suggestions helpful.

Please join in the conversation and recommend any other ways you have found helpful to deal with job-related stress.